A Prelude & Introduction to Practical Magic
By Ankhie
[Snip] I. Everything that breathes, grows, occurs naturally or is crafted with intent has spirit – and spiritual power.
Witchcraft, as it is understood by most practitioners, is an earth-based belief system. Its core tenet is that the Earth, and everything on it and in it, contain spiritual power. Things that are mass-produced, without variation or individualized intent, do not have spirit. A rock has spirit, but a factory-made paver does not. A hand-sewn and embroidered pillowcase has spirit. That thing on your bed that you bought at Marshall’s does not. And obviously, everything that grows and/or breathes has spirit – although a plant raised from seed in your own garden, or found in a forest meadow will have more spirit than one that you picked up at the Lumber Depot.
II. The spirit of a thing relates to its origin and how it functions. The degree of its power relates to where and how it was formed.
This is important, because a witch uses or borrows those powers to work magic. The spirit of each thing differs in degree (see above comment on wild/home grown plants vs. factory farmed) and kind. The power of an onion is vastly different than that of a rose. The power of obsidian (volcanic glass) formed and forced out from the Earth’s own furnaces differs greatly from that of sea glass, created by man and reshaped by sand and sea. Both are magical, both have spirit – but whereas the sharp, lethal energy of obsidian makes for great arrowheads, sea-glass is much better suited to an amulet. And you wouldn’t woo a lover with a dozen onions, now, would you?
What’s been said…